


Ashes and Wine

by TheLadySif



Series: Of Monsters & Men [1]
Category: Thor (Movies), Thor - All Media Types
Genre: Alternate Universe - Vampire, Assassination Attempt(s), Assassins & Hitmen, Bodyguard Romance, F/M, Mischief and Mistletoe 2014, Mystery, Vampire Loki, very brief mention of past romance
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-12-20
Updated: 2014-12-20
Packaged: 2018-02-27 20:37:00
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 8,161
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2705933
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TheLadySif/pseuds/TheLadySif
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>A mysterious Prince visits Asgard and Sif is tasked to be his bodyguard during his stay.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Ashes and Wine

**Author's Note:**

  * For [sabinelagrande](https://archiveofourown.org/users/sabinelagrande/gifts).



> I was going to post this as five individual chapters but I thought it would flow better as one work with breaks between each scene.
> 
> I know you said no other pairings other than Thor/Jane but I just included an implied reference to another pairing in the past but this focus mostly on Loki/Sif.

Sif waited beside Heimdall as night fell across Asgard. The Allfather had requested an audience with her over a very sensitive matter- a Prince from a foreign land was coming to Asgard, and Sif was tasked to be his bodyguard while he was here. Sif was supposed to meet the Prince in Heimdall's observatory at sundown, but sundown had long since past and she was still waiting for his arrival. "Is there something interferring with the Prince's arrival? He should have been here by now."

"The Prince has requested that I hold off momentarily while he finishes a few business arrangements," Heimdall answered.

Sif sighed, "Perhaps, I should come back later then."

"He is nearly finished. Just wait a moment more, sister," Heimdall told her.

"You said that ten minutes ago," Sif tapped her foot impatiently against floor. Heimdall's abrupt movement would have startled Sif if not for her intense training. "Finally," Sif murmured under her breath and Heimdall gave her a sharp look as he activated the Bifrost. Sif stood up straight as the Prince stepped out from the intergalatic bridge. He was taller than her, by a foot or two at the most. Despite the cloak that covered his face and the rest of his body, Sif could tell he was skinnier than most Asgardians when he stepped forward. The dark cloak billowed behind him showing long lean torso and legs.

Sif refocused her eyes to the hood that covered his face when the Prince spoke, "I believe that is going to be my new favorite way of traveling."

"The Bifrost impresses many," Heimdall explained to the Prince. "Welcome to Asgard."

"Is she supposed to be my Escort? She's exactly my type of woman," The Prince motioned toward Sif as she did her best to calm her anger. The Allfather had given her a huge chance to prove herself worhty of becoming an Einjhar and she was not going to blow it on breaking the bones of this arrogant son of a bitch. She was still going to put him in his place.

"I am not an Escort, especially not for you or anyone else. I am one of Asgard's finest warriors and you are a guest here despite whatever your title may be. You will respect our kind and culture or I will go to the Allfather about your behavior. I am your bodyguard. I protect you and if you want me to do my job properly, you will treat me with a little respect." The Prince turned to look toward Sif during her little spiel.

"What is your name?" The Prince asked her, circling around her.

"I am Sif Tyrsdottir," Sif answered, trying to ignore the way the Prince was looking at her.

"Well, Sif Tyrsdottir, where I am from, Escort has several different meanings. One of which is a derogratory term and another meaning guide. I was referring to the latter term. I apologize if my words lead you to the wrong definition," The Prince explained to her, crossing his arms across his chest. "Still you are exactly what I look for in a guide. Someone unexpected, smart, and truthful. Although, if you were the other type of Escort, then I couldn't say no to a beautiful woman like yourself. Shall we?" He extended his arm toward the entrance to Heimdall's observatory.

Sif stared back at the shadow beneath the cloak, "Follow me."

It was eerily quiet as they made their way back toward the palace. "Before we reach the Allfather, I have a few...well, demands sound too commanding and since you reacted negatively to the word escort, I will not make the same mistake twice. So, let's call them requests." The Prince began to say and Sif had to repress the urge to turn on her heel and punch him in the face. She couldn't believe she was to protect this man. He was charming one moment and then an arrogant ass the next.

"I'm sure you do..." Sif mumbled to herself. The Prince stopped and Sif turned to look at him. The dark hood still had yet to uncover his face, but Sif was sure that he had heard her and was giving her a look of disdain. "Please, continue."

The Prince stepped forward and they continued on their path to the palace. "Firstly, I am never to be bothered between sunrise and sunset. If you need to speak with for whatever reason, then you may do so after sunset. If you dare disturb me a moment before sunset, I will be extremely cross with you and you will not want that. I sleep during the day and stay awake all night."

Sif said nothing about his odd request but nodded in understanding. She was glad that they were at least moving quick enough that they should reach the palace before midnight.

"Secondly, for my housing arrangements, I require that all the windows and any glass doors are to be covered by very dark and very thick curtains during the daytime."

Sif raised an eyebrow at him, "That's an odd demand."

"I have a skin condition that is very sensitive to any and all natural light. This is why I sleep all day," The Prince waved his hand in a dismissive manner about that topic before continuing with his requests. "After sunset, you will accompany me anywhere I wish to go. During the day, you may do whatever you wish but I would suggest that you sleep. I don't need you nodding off when you are supposed to be protecting me. I'll have the Allfather deliever my food before you arrive to guard me."

"Are there any more demands- I mean _requests_ from you, your highness?" Sif corrected herself sarcastically.

"Yes, my last request is that absolutely nothing - not even a spoon- made from silver can come in contact with me," The Prince told her as they neared the gates of the city.

Sif glanced down at her armor, "My entire armor is made of silver, as is my sword."

The Prince stopped dead in his tracks and Sif turned to look at him once again. He had moved away from her instinctively the moment after her words processed in his mind, "Remove them."

"Excuse me?" Sif crossed her arms in front of her chestplate.

"As I said, remove your armor." The Prince repeated again. "Did you think I was kidding? Absolutely no silver must come in contact with my person so remove your-"

Sif held up a hand to interrupt him and he stepped back from her. "I heard you the first time. My armor will not be removed. How am I supposed to be protecting you if I cannot protect myself? Without my armor and my sword, I am more vulnerable to attacks."

The Prince was quiet for a moment as he thought over her words. "I will speak with the Allfather about this. In the meantime, please refrain from getting too close to me."

"Gladly," Sif complied.

* * *

 Sif sighed to herself as she entered her chambers with the Prince following behind her. The Allfather had declared that there was going to be a celebration for the Prince's Arrival. Which mean Sif had to change out of her armor and into one of her battle ready dresses. She cast a glance over her shoulder and she grabbed a dress from the dresser. "Please try not to touch anything," She said to the Prince before ducking behind her changing screen.

"Quite the collection of weapons." The Prince said aloud."At least you're ready for any kind of danger."

"Quite a few of them have silver etched into their hilts." Sif told him so he wouldn't touch them. She peeled off her armor and began removing her leathers.

"Can you really fight in that?" The Prince asked her after she stepped out in the dress.

"I'll have two daggers in my boots, two strapped in my thighs, and two smaller ones will be holding up my hair," Sif twirled the two smaller ones before going over to the mirror and began putting her hair up.

"Well, at least I know you can protect me if something goes wrong tonight." The Prince mused as he continued moving around the room.

"Do you have many enemies you need protecting from?" Sif asked him as she carefully placed the daggers into her hair.

"Enemies can come from anywhere at anytime. Besides, I'm not overly popular and I like to be prepared for anything." The Prince answered with a shrug of his shoulders. "You have a lot of weapons to protect yourself from your own enemies. You like to be prepared as well."

"The majority of my enemies are dead and the other ones are locked away somewhere beneath your feet." Sif mentioned as she turned to face him. "I can handle myself quite fine. Are you ready to go or would you like to change?"

The Prince lowered his hood and took off his cloak for the first time that night. His skin was incredibly pale but his green eyes shined brightly like emeralds. He had cheek bones that looked sharp enough one could cut themselves on them if they weren't careful. The Prince's hair was long and wavy framing his face His thin lips twisted into a smirk before he spoke, "I think I look good enough for the celebration. Don't you agree?"

Sif had to admit to herself that he did look rather fetching, definitely handsome. She caught herself staring and looked away from him. "You look fine. Shall we go?" Sif stepped past him toward the door. She checked the hall before stepping outside with the Prince following her behind her.

Once they arrived at the celebration, Sif escorted him over to the where the Thor and the Warriors Three wer talking with a few maidens. Thor and the others smiled happily at her. "These are my friends." Sif told the Prince. "Prince Thor, Fandral the Dashing, Hogun the Grim, and Volstagg the Great." She gestured to each one as she spoke their names. "This is Prince... I don't believe I caught your name."

"Prince Loki," the Prince supplied and shook each of their hands.

"So which of the nine realms are you from?" Fandral asked curiously as he shook the Prince's hand.

"I'm from a lot of places, I've been spending most of my time on Midgard. The mortals are starting to evolve more and more with each passing century." The Prince explained vaguely. "You should visit sometime. The food is delicious there." The Prince smiled to himself but there was something about his smile that left Sif with an odd feeling.

"Would you like a glance of wine?" Sif asked him, trying to mentally shake away the odd feeling. The Prince nodded and Sif gestured for the wine tray to be bought over to them. She grabbed a glass for herself and the Prince. She made sure to have a sip from the Prince's glass just in case anyone tried poisoning him before handing him the glass. The Prince sniffed it and his face filled with confusion for a moment before he took a tentative sip while Thor and the Warriors Three watched him. He smiled at the others and raised his glass in toast before drinking the rest of it. Sif noticed the way his jaw clenched after his first sip and after finishing it off. The odd feeling in her stomach return and Sif brushed it off as nothing. Perhaps, the Prince was just getting used to the way their wine tasted.

* * *

 Sif rubbed at her eyes tiredly. She had barely slept over the last couple of days. With all the daylight that poured into her room, she could now see why his odd request for thick curtains was necessary. The Allfather had told her to leave her armor in her chambers until the armor she would be using to protect the Prince with was made, but she could still bring along her sword and shield until then. Without her armor, she felt practically naked despite wearing her leathers. She glanced out the window to see the sun starting to set. "Well, it's now or never," She murmured to herself before exiting her chambers. The Prince's chambers weren't far from her own considering that she lived in the west wing of the living chambers, which typically were used to house Asgard's Einjhar guards and any intergalatic guests. She made her way down to his chambers once again.

The Prince had set up a routine after meeting with the Allmother one night. She would meet the Prince after he had his meal and the two of them would join the Allmother in the library. The Prince and the Queen would spend a few hours pouring over ancient tomes while Sif read a few books on battle tatics and strategies. They would bid the Queen goodnight and the Prince would retreat back to his room for a small hand-to-hand combat training with Sif. After training, the Prince would meditate before sunrise. Once the sun started coming up, the Prince would head back to sleep for the day. A guard would take her place at sunrise so she could get train with the others and get some sleep before sunset arrived once more.

She greeted the guard at the door and dismissed him for the night before knocking lightly on the door. The door opened and the Prince stepped out, "How was your day? Did you get plenty of sleep?"

"It never feels like enough sleep with the sun shining in my room. I may have to invest in some dark curtains like yours," Sif answered as she led him to the library, making sure to watch the halls they passed through for unwanted visitors. "My day was good. How was your sleep, Prince Loki?"

"It felt like death," the Prince replied and she gave him an odd look. He shrugged his shoulders in response. "You know this is getting to be too formal for my tastes. I would prefer that you simply called me Loki from this moment on, Sif."

"Well, _Loki_ , what exactly are you and the Allmother are looking for in all those dusty books?" Sif asked him. It wasn't the first time that she had asked him that question. He spent the majority of his time in the library, those books seemed to be the real reason he was here in Asgard and Sif was determined to find out why. He hadn't bothered given her a real answer to the question, he merely repeated the same thing over and over when she asked.

"I'll let you know later," Loki murmured with a smirk as they entered the library.

Sif rolled her eyes at his answer, "Let me know when it's later, then." 

"What book are you going to read this time? A swashbuckling adventure or a cheesy romance novel?" Loki inqured, glancing at the titles of the books on the bookshelves as they passed by them.

"Thankfully, neither." Sif grabbed the book she had been reading last night from the shelf. "Grohm's Guide to Self-Defense. You should read it sometime."

"Perhaps, one of these days I will," Loki mused before heading off to begin searching through books with the Allmother. Sif sat a good distance away that whatever the Allmother and Loki discussed was barely heard by her ears. The two of them didn't speak much during this session except for the small talk they had about Frigga and her magical students.. The time passed quickly enough while Sif was reading her book that she was a tad surprise when the Allmother bid her goodnight. She put her bookmark back in her book and bowed respectfully as Frigga retired for the night. Sif placed her book back on its shelf and turned around to grab Loki away from his books. She almost jumped when she found Loki right behind her and stifled the urge to hold her blade up to his throat. "Shall we?" He gestured toward the door and Sif nodded as she lead him back to his chambers.

The walk this time was silent and Sif wondered if Loki had found something in his books that he was pondering. Sif checked his chambers for intruders before she set down her blade and shield. "All clear, Loki. Did you need a moment to get ready for our training session?"

"Actually, I'm still in a bit of pain from last night. Tonight I want to focus more on my meditation," Loki told her as he disappeared into his bed chambers and Sif followed him, grabbing her blade and shield.

"Alright then."

"Would you like to join me this time?" He asked her and Sif quirked an eyebrow out of curiousity. She set her sword and shield down on the table by the bed. "It's quite soothing. I find it to be the best way to clear my head. Besides, if you reach a deep enough meditation state, you might be privy to a look at your future." He began to set up a couple of pillows on the floor in front of his bed before he sat down on the floor.

"I'll join this one time because you asked." Sif answered, joining Loki on the floor. "How exactly does this work?"

"You get into a position you're most comfortable in and close your eyes. You focus on your breathing only and try not to focus on worries or friends or problems. Just breathe in and out." Loki explained to her as he laid back and set the pillow underneath his head, closing his eyes. "It's not that hard. You most likely won't have a vision. I only get them occasionally/"

Sif closed her eyes and focus on her breathing and trying to relax.

_Breathe in, Breathe out. Breathe in, Breathe out. Breathe in, Breathe out. Breathe in, Breathe out._

Sif was sure she had been focusing on her breathing for quite some time, hours had passed by. She took a small break on focusing on her breathing so she could focus on relaxing each part of her body individually. She had started where she felt most of her tension at the moment and then focused on relaxing her body going from her toes to her head. Once she had done that two or three times, Sif refocused on her breathing.

_Breathe in, Breathe out. Breathe in, Breathe out. Breathe in, Breathe out. Breathe in, Breathe out._

She was so focused on her breathing that she started to drift, her breathing  and Loki forgotten as she drifted slowly into a vision.

_Loki cupped the side of her face and pulled her closer to him before pressing his lips against hers._

_"We can't do this." Sif attempted to push him away. Loki grabbed her waist and kept her close to him._

_His lips moved upward to her ear, pausing there briefly. "You want to. I want to. Why should we deny a basic need?" He whispered in her ear before gently nipping her earlobe, continuing back down her neck._

_Sif gasped as he unexpectedly sucked hard near one of the veins in her neck, "It's almost sunrise."_

_Loki groaned and pulled back from her, but kept her within his arms. "I don't care about some silly sunrise. I want you here and now if you'll have me in return."_

_"I'm supposed to protect you-" Sif tried to argue._

_"We'll protect each other." Loki interrupted her._

"Sif, wake up." Loki shook her gently and her attempt to remove his hands was pitiful. Sif rubbed at her eyes and slowly opened them. Her head was spinning wildly and throbbing painfully. This whole meditation thing Loki had her try left her her feeling weak and almost like she might get sick. One of his cold hands was placed against her forehead. Sif relaxed into the cool touch as she struggled to keep her eyes open. "Do you feel disorientated or queasy?"

"Definitely a tad queasy." Sif murmured as she moved to stand up, grabbing Loki's arm to support her.

"You may have had a vision then. Typically after receiving a vision, there's disorientation or nauseau." Loki explained to her, keeping her upright as she swayed dangerously. "What did you see?"

Sif felt her cheeks heat up out of embarrasement at what she had seen. "It's private." She answered, detaching herself from him. "What time is it?"

"Almost sunrise."

"Your routine-" Sif began to say but she stepped forward and started to fall. She expected the pain from hitting the cold hard floor but it never came. Two arms had grabbed her before she fell and were holding her upright once again.

"You're in no shape to be going anywhere." Loki told her, before unceremonisouly scooping her up off the ground and carried her over to the bed.

"I can't stay." Sif attempted to argue as he set her down gently on the bed.

Loki shushed her, "You can for the day. If anyone asks, you can say I asked you to stay to protect me." Sif pushed herself up onto her shaky arms. "Sif, please. This is something you need to sleep off." Loki squeezed her hand gently and images from the vision appeared in her head again. "I'll sleep on the couch. You can have the bed and when you awake later, you can leave then."

"I should sleep on the couch." Sif yawned tiredly, rubbing her tired eyes once more before curling up one the bed.

Loki smiled softly and tucked back a piece of her hair behind her ear. "Goodnight, Sif."

* * *

 Sif awoke with a start as she heard something shatter against the floor. She jolted into a sitting position and had to block out the sun as it shined brightly in her eyes. She squinted and pulled back out of the sun, her head throbbing painfully.  Loki's meditation was a terrible idea. She swore under her breath she would never agree to it again. She stared over at the window to see one of the curtains torn in half. Sif shook her head and rubbed tiredly at her eyes before her movements came to a stand still. Her eyes flicked back to the dark, thick curtains hanging on the windows- on Loki's windows. Sif jumped out of bed, cursing the stars underneath her breath. She was barely awake when she heard a blood curdling scream from the next room. She grabbed her sword from the table and charged out the door, prepared to slice apart whatever was in the next room.

Loki's head snapped in her direction as the door opened before quickly looking away. He staggered backwards away from another man, who uncermionously dropped to the floor. "I did what I had to, Sif. He was an assassin sent to kill me." Loki hissed, as he moved back to a dark corner. "Are you alright?" Sif took a step toward him, noticing the way he was holding his arm close to him. "Check that he's dead." Loki demanded, curling away from her.

Sif hurried over to the man on the floor and felt for a pulse on his wrist. Finding none there, she turned him over to check for a pulse in his neck. Instead she saw his neck was bleeding profusely from two deep holes that had punctured the main artery in his neck. "There's no pulse and he's bleeding out too much. I won't be able to stop the bleeding. What did you do to him?" Sif stood and turned to look at Loki. Despite enclosing himself in the dark corner, Sif could see his face clearly since all the other curtains had been slashed just like the one in his bedroom chambers. His lips were caked in blood and it had trickled down his chin from the corner of his mouth. She stood there for a moment, staring at him and not saying a word.

Loki opened his mouth to reply and that's when Sif noticed his teeth had changed from the night before when they had been perfectly normal. Now, two very large, very sharp canine teeth were very prominante and his mouth was red with blood. "I.. I defended myself."

"With your teeth? You killed him with your teeth?" Sif questioned him, unsure of exactly what was going on at this moment. She was more aware of his injuries now. He leaned against the wall to get off his wounded leg and his hands shook terribly causing him to wince when he moved his left hand.

"He was going to kill me!" He pointed at the weapon on the floor and Sif kept one eye on him and looked at the daggers that were abandoned on the floor. One of them gleamed in the sunlight that fell on them; Sif recognized the metal blade as pure silver. The other blade was covered in blood, presumably Loki's, given that the assassin wasn't bleeding from anywhere other than his neck.

"I need to see how badly the damage is." Sif told him and hurried toward the desk in the room. She pulled open one of the drawers and grabbed the bandaging tape from inside.

"It's bright enough in here." Loki murmured, gripping his head and curling up into a ball on the ground. "I'm pretty sure it's midday given the headache I have."

Sif approached Loki and crouched beside him. Sif touched his shoulder gently and Loki's head snapped toward her unexpectedly, making her drop the bandanges she had procured for him. His eyes had somehow turned into an alarming shade of crimson, his sharp teeth were bared at her, and a low growling sound eminating from his throat also startled her into grabbing her blade and pointing it at him. He cowered away from the silver blade but kept his gaze locked with hers. Sif stood slowly and headed for the door, never taking her eyes off him. Something was wrong. Something was very wrong. She could sense the way he looked at her as if he wanted to eat her. His leg was still bleeding badly and she knew he would need a healer soon if he left the wound untreated.

"Sit tight, I'll have the day guard grab a healer-" Sif began to say.

"-I need to speak with the Allmother." Loki moved his leg and groaned.

Sif ran to the hall and saw the guard coming toward her. She yelled for him to go fetch a healer and to tell the Allmother the Prince had been attacked and he wished to see her. Sif hurried back inside the room once the guard had left. Grabbing a decorative bowl from one of the tables, she filled it with water from the wash room and returned to the Prince along with a couple of towels. "We need to clean the wound so the healer can heal it properly." Loki stared at her without speaking before gently moving his leg so she could see his wound better. "This is probably going to hurt." She murmured, setting the towel in the water as she rolled up his pant leg to see the wound on his leg.

The wound on his leg wasn't that deep, it would heal itself within a matter of days if taken care of properly but he would have at least one scar to remind him of the incident. She grabbed the towel and began to wipe the blood away. She grabbed the bandages she had dropped and began to wrap his leg once the wound was clean. Loki turned and held out his wounded arm after carefully rolling up the sleeve. Sif had just started cleaning the other wound when the guard entered with a healer and the Allmother. Sif stepped back to let the healer do her work and turned toward the Allmother. "The assassin is dead. Loki killed him..." She trailed off and cast a backwards glance at the dead assassin.

Frigga set her hand on Sif's shoulder. "There's something you should know about the Prince."

* * *

Sif watched Loki from the doorway of the balcony. His wounds had started healing nicely according to the healer. He turned to look at her from over his shoulder before staring back out at the landscape in front of him. Sif had been avoiding him for a couple days after the Allmother had spoke with her. Sif cleared her throat before speaking, "The Allmother explained everything to me. You're a Vampire. To live, you must drink one's blood. Since you've been living on Midgard, it's been the blood of the mortals or their animals. How long have you been like this?"

"I've been this way for thousands of years. There is one other who is older than I am. To the other Vampires, they see me as their Prince and the one who sired me as their Queen. I've seen the rise and fall of many civilizations." Loki began to explain to her quietly and Sif stepped toward him to hear him better. "I can no longer remember who I was before I became who I am. The only thing I can remember is darkness. That's the first thing I can recall. It was dark, and cold, and I was...." Loki paused as he leaned against the balcony railing. "Scared. I was very scared and I learned the hard way about what had happened to me. When I started out into the sun the next morning, I was fine at first. The sun rose, my head began to pound, my skin began to itch. Midday came and my flesh was burning, my skull felt like it was splitting in half. I ducked into an abandoned cottage in the woods; I ended up passed out on the floor. I awoke from an insatiable hunger, not for blood- but for some indescrible craving I had yet to find." Loki explained to her.

"Had?" Sif asked him as she leaned on the railing beside him.

Loki smiled to himself and turned toward her, "I woke up one morning and it struck me what I was searching for. A cure. I craved a cure from this damned life I was cursed to. I want to live in the sun. I want to be able to be nourished with actual food. I wanted to be surrounded by people again without them being afraid of me. I began my search far and wide for a cure. Your ancestors found one many years ago and that is why I am here. The Queen and I have been translating it to the best of our abilities but the langauge is ancient. It will take us centuries, possibly millenias, to decode it." Sif looked away from him.

"Why would you give this life if it is all you've known? Could you not become friends with the others?" Sif began to question him. "Perhaps even take a lover from your own kind?"

"My kind is few and we are hunted. The mortals fear us, which is understandable. Our nourishment is the very blood that courses through their veins. For us to live, some of them must die... " Loki sighed to himself," I had a lover, one of my kind who knew what her craving was. This sweet wine was all she wanted. She would ask me to get it for her and do these ridiculous favors in return when I managed to procure it for her..."

He paused before he continued speaking once again, "But one day, a jealous mortal from next door accused her of being a witch to the city councilmen. The mortal woman was infatuated with me and she was so jealous. Since witchcraft was unacceptable in that day and age, they dragged my lover out during the sunlight when our powers were weakened and they-" His voice cracked and Sif looked over at him. "They burned her outside of our home. The councilmen claimed that if she was a witch, then she would use her powers to keep herself from burning. Those idiots had no idea what they were doing. They killed at least a hundred innocents mortals based off only rumors others had told them. I murdered the jealous woman after the night had fallen and my lover had been reduced to nothing but ashes and wine."

"I'm so sorry," Sif apologized.

"It's fine. It's fine. It has been a few centuries since then. I thought I had gotten over her. I know she would have wanted me to move on and live my life," Loki waved his hand dismissively. "I had a few lovers before her. This too shall pass and things will be better."

"What will you do after you find a cure?"

Loki was silent for a moment before turning to look at her. "I would return to that cottage in the woods. I've fixed it up over the years that I've lived. It's the closest I have to a home. Since I started my new life there, I figured that it would be only fitting that I die there when the time comes." He cleared his throat before continuing, "Since you've been kind enough to share your home, you're welcome to visit mine at any time."

Sif grabbed his hand and squeezed it gently, "I would like that."

Loki squeezed hers in return, "I think you would like it. The best time to visit would be the winter after it snows overnight. It may seem nothing compared to the views here in Asgard-" Loki gestured to the stars before them, "-but when the sun rises, it hits that snow perfectly. It sparkles and shines brighter than a thousand stars. It's simply magical."

Sif looked out at the stars of the Asgardian night sky, "It sounds beautiful."

Loki nodded in agreement while staring at her, "Very beautiful. One of the most beautiful sights, I've ever seen."

"For a moment there, it sounded like you were referring to..." Sif turned to find him staring and her words drifted off as her eyes met his, "...something else." Loki squeezed her hand and Sif realized that they hadn't let go of each other's hands yet. There was a glimmer in his gaze that made Sif a tad uneasy.

"I'll speak to the Allfather about new arrangements for my stay. I won't have you be my bodyguard any longer," Loki told her unexpectedly.

"No, it's fine. I can protect-" Sif tried to say but Loki stopped her by pressing his finger over her mouth.

"You were a fine bodyguard, Sif." Loki interrupted her. "I know you seek to become one of Asgard's finest warriors and I will make sure that it is clear to Odin you are the finest warrior of them all. However, I have proven to protect myself quite well and I will be heading back home after sunset."

Sif furrowed her brows in confusion and mild disappointment. "You're leaving?"

Loki nodded his head but gave her a smile. "I'm leaving so I can pack some of my things for my return. I figured if I'm gonna be here for a few centuries, I might as well make sure that I'm comfortable." Sif smiled as well. "You might like one or two of the trinkets I bring back."

"I'll wait for your return, Prince Loki." Sif clasped her other hand over both of theirs.

Loki cupped the side of her face and pulled her closer to him before pressing his lips against hers.

"We can't do this now." Sif attempted to push him away. Loki grabbed her waist and kept her close to him.

His lips moved upward to her ear, pausing there briefly. "You want to. I want to. Why should we deny ourselves?" He whispered in her ear before gently nipping her earlobe, continuing back down her neck.

Sif gasped as he unexpectedly sucked hard near one of the veins in her neck, "It's almost sunrise."

Loki groaned and pulled back from her, but kept her within his arms. "I don't care about some silly sunrise. I want you here and now if you'll have me in return."

"I'm supposed to protect you-" Sif tried to argue.

"We'll protect each other." Loki interrupted her, threading his fingers into her hair. Sif paused for a moment. This was the vision she had seen in her meditation. "I promise I won't let any harm come to you."

"I don't need protecting." Sif began slowly. "I'm capable of defending myself but I think you could use some work. After all, if everything goes well you won't be able to kill people with your teeth anymore." Loki smiled happily and so did Sif. "I think that'll call for some a lot more one-on-one, don't you think?" Loki grabbed the sides of her face once again and kissed her hard.

Sif found herself accepting the kiss, allowing it to deepen, to grow in desire driving away any sense of fear she may have had about his bloodsucking tendencies. Her fingers raked through his long, wavy hair while Loki's hands explored Sif's curvaceous form. Sif began to pulled Loki with her as they stumbled back into his bed chambers. Sif tugged his shirt upward with a murmured excuse of, "Wouldn't want to rip this fine shirt of yours during our one-on-one."

Loki chuckled and pulled away from Sif to undress himself while Sif did the same. His eyes lingered on her as she undressed, her battle scars showing against her fair skin. He removed the last bit of his clothing before moving towards her. He began to kiss each of her scars, her trophies of bravey, as she revealed them. She hummed in approval at the feeling of his cold hands against her warm body. It made her unable to deny what she wanted any long. Sif pushed him onto the bed before taking off the last piece of her leathers. Loki lifted his head to stare at her as she surged toward him. He reached up and grabbed the back of her neck and pulled her into a heated kiss. Cold lips passionatley sweeping over warm ones.

Sif slid her body down until she was in line with his erect member. She took hold of his cock and guided him to her entrance before sliding down on him slowly. Sif moaned in pleasure as she moved back up before slowly moving down on him again, taking more of his manhood enter her, getting used to the feeling of him insider her before the real fun would begin. She gripped his shoulders after fully sheathing himself inside. Loki's hands had moved to her waist, gently coaxing her to start moving. His eyes flicked up, watching her for any sign of pain. Sif rolled her hips back and forth slowly, knowing that her light movements had Loki wound up and ready to go given the way he was clawing into her waist. She started picking up the pace as she rocked harder against him. Loki bucked up against her, unable to control himself any longer. Sif gasped at the sudden action. The way he moved inside her felt wonderful and she kissed him hard after telling him to do it again. Loki groaned into the kiss as he bucked into her again.

He took this moment of her leaning over him to flip the two of them over. Sif stared up at Loki, pulling his head down into more heated kisses as he took control. He started off slowly sliding in and out of her until Sif was begging him to move faster. Loki threaded one of his hands into her silky soft hair as his other held onto Sif tightly while he thrusted into her faster. Sif hooked her legs around his waist while her nails dug into his back. Their movements became faster and harder with each moan and groan. Loki snaked a hand between their bodies and started to rub at the little bundle of nerves above Sif's entrance, intenet on making her losing control. Sif gasped at his action and arched into his touch, very close to her release. Her nails dug into his back painfully as her moans quickened with his movements. Loki had felt his climax building and Sif's nail pressing deep enough into his back drew blood, the smell of it sending him into overdrive. Sif gasped out her climax after Loki's thrusts grew harder and faster, Loki followed behind her not long after.

Loki sighed as he pulled out of her slowly and laid down on the bed beside her, to catch his breath while Sif caught hers. "We'll definitely have to have more one-on-one when I return," Loki murmured as he turned on his side to face her.

Sif laughed and nodded in agreement. "Yes, we will have to."

"For now though, we should get some sleep until sunset arrives." Loki yawned tiredly and Sif curled up against Loki after he grabbed a blanket to cover themselves.

* * *

After sunset had arrived, Loki and Sif returned to the Bifrost to say their goodbyes. Loki noticed the way that Heimdall's jaw clenched after Loki had kissed Sif on her cheek, but he said nothing about it. Loki turned and waved goodbye to Sif once more before stepping into the Bifrost connection back to Midgard. He landed gracefully on the ground and began to examine his surroundings. Heimdall had delievered him safely home. The sight of his cottage eased his mind for a moment before his eye caught the smoke coming fro the chimney. Snow fluttered down and covered the ground around him. It crunched beneath his boots as he walked up to the cottage door and prepared himself for whatever was on the other side. The door swung open and he took a step inside.

"Welcome home, love." A silky sweet voice said to Loki as he stood in the doorway.

Loki chuckled to himself as he took in his uninvited house guest. Her curly blonde hair reached her shoulders, her cold grey eyes locked with his, and her sharp red nails tapped against the arm of the chair unhappily. "Sigyn, how wonderful to see you." The tone in his voice indicated he was definitely not happy to see her.

"What? No tears for your dead wife?" Sigyn asked as she stood from the chair, smoothing out her black dress before walking toward Loki.

"You were not my wife." Loki reminded her as she stopped in front of him. Her heels bumped up her height but not by much and Loki stared her down.

"You'll have to admit, I was probably the closest to becoming your wife." Sigyn twirled one of her curls around her finger. "We shared so much together. You remember that apartment in Roma, don't you?"

"Let me get you a glass of wine." Loki suggested, closing the door behind him as he moved past her to the kitchen. "As I recall, it was your favorite." He grabbed two wine glasses from one of the cabinet and poured the Asgardian wine Sif had given him into both. As he did so, Sigyn appeared behind him and her arms wrapped around his middle.

"I missed you." She murmured and Loki removed himself from her arms before handing the glass of wine to her.

"You clearly didn't miss me that much." Loki set the wine bottle down on the counter.

"I had to go into hiding. I couldn't risk you getting hurt-" Sigyn tried to argue but Loki's laugh silenced her.

"That's very funny. You should be more careful if you were trying to remain hidden, Sigyn." Sigyn drank her glass of wine slowly. "You sent that assassin to kill me. He reeked of your perfume-" Sigyn set down the wine glass on the table. "-that was the final clue to figuring out who wanted me dead. Did you fuck that poor sap over as well? You knew I was looking for a cure and you knew where I would end up looking for it. Frigga told me all about you while I was there. You were her most promising sorcery student and then you were foolish enough to go into the woods on your own. You became one of us and the Asgardians typically don't like Vampires. You fled and you craved the wine you drank at home. You faked your death to get away again. Did you think I would fawn all over you when you came back? I've moved on."

Sigyn took a sniff before wrinkling her nose in disgust. "Yes, you have. Haven't you? You've been all over each other, I can smell it. What lie have you concocted for her? A sensitive light condition perhaps?"

"I told her the truth after I killed your assassin." They locked gazes and Loki wished that looks could kill. "She didn't mind too much hence the smell."

"Leather, lavender, lemongrass, and is that the distinct metallic tang of silver?" Sigyn inquired after a couple more sniffs of Loki. "There's only one person I know in Asgard who smells like that. You're living quite dangerously these days. I may have to pay her a visit."

Loki shoved her against the wall, holding her above the ground by her throat. "You stay away from her. You go anywhere near her, you try to harm her in any way, I will spend all my time dedicated to finding you and I will rip your throat out. Understood, _darling_?"

Sigyn laughed. "If you want something done, it looks like you have to do it yourself. Am I right? Besides, I'm not after her." Loki's eyes narrowed. "I want you after you have your cure- when you're weak and vulnerable. We'll settle the score then and you won't see or hear from me until that moment."

Loki let go of his hold on her throat and she dropped to the floor with a loud thud. "If I were you, I would stay away from me."

Sigyn smirked and stood up slowly. "You'll be seeing me again. I promise." She waved goodbye before hurrying out the door and disappearing once again.

* * *

Sif hurried quickly to Heimdall's Observatory. Heimdall glanced at her as she arrived before turning back to the stars. "Hello, brother. How are you?"

"I am well." Heimdall answered shortly.

"Good." Sif stepped up beside him. "Have you given any more thought to the question I asked you a couple days ago?" Heimdall remained quiet but Sif could swear that he was sighing internally. "I know you don't like the idea given that he's not Asgardian-"

"I believe I used the term blood sucker-" Heimdall interrupted her.

"-but I like him and he likes me. I would like to court him. I don't need your permission but I would like to know that my brother cares more about my happiness that he would give me permission to do so." Sif continued, shooting him a glare. "He doesn't want to be a Vampire, anymore. He wants to be normal like you and me. Despite what you say, I'm still going to see him."

"He's returning at sunset." Heimdall told her.

Sif could sense that she was still getting nowhere with her brother's blessing. She sighed before turning to leave. "You'll see me again at sunset then."

"If he makes you happy-" She stopped in her tracks and looked back at Heimdall, "-then you have my blessing. If he hurts you, I'll kill him."

Sif smiled to herself. "Thank you, brother." She ran off to prepare for Loki's return. Sunset came faster than Sif anticipated and it was dark outside when Sif realized what time it was. She cursed the stars under her breath before running to the door and pulling it open. She ran out of her room and immediately collided with another person. "I'm so sorry-" She began apologizing.

"That's alright, Sif." Her eyes snapped upward and locked onto pale skin, sharp cheekbones, and green eyes.

"Loki!" She threw her arms around his neck and Loki smiled happily as she hugged him tight. "I missed you." She murmured in his ear.

Loki returned her embrace. "I missed you too." He pulled back slightly out of the hug before cupping her face and kissing her gently. Sif returned the kiss happily before breaking the kiss. "How was Midgard?"

"It was good but I justed wanted to return back here to see you." Loki replied, pressing a kiss to her forehead. "I have more to tell you later. Right now they're putting all my things into my room but we have quite a bit of time to kill before I have to see the Allfather. I wonder what we could do in that time frame." Sif smiled, giving Loki a knowing look about what he was referring to before she pulled him into her room, locking the door behind them.


End file.
